Labor report points to stronger economy, improving prospects

Employers shrugged off worries about the U.S. economy downshifting, adding a whopping 271,000 non-farm jobs nationalwide in October and raising worker pay in the process.

The unemployment rate in October dipped slightly to 5 percent, and measures of stress in the job market continued improving, the Labor Department reported Friday in a solid monthly jobs report.

“The weaker job gains in the previous two months look like nothing more than speed bumps,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist for forecaster Moody’s Analytics. “At this pace of job growth, unemployment and underemployment are rapidly declining, and full employment is coming into view.”

The most recent figures for Florida and local counties, from September, put the Miami-Dade jobless rate at 5.8 percent and the Broward rate at 4.9 percent. Statewide, unemployment was at 5.2 percent. Those figures were reported in mid-October; the next local report will be released in mid-November.

Here are three important takeaways from October’s national report.

▪ Hiring broad across sector: Employers across most major sectors of the economy were robust in their hiring. The professional and business services sector led all others with 78,000 new posts. Over the prior 12 months, this category, which includes better-paying white-collar jobs, had averaged 52,000 jobs.

The hard-hit construction sector continued to rebound as new home starts and renovations continue to grow. The sector added 31,000 jobs for the month. Retailers continued to add jobs as the holiday season approaches, with nearly 44,000 new hires. The leisure and hospitality sector added 41,000 posts, a sure sign that Americans are again eating out and companies are sending employees on business trips.

The two sour notes in hiring were the labor-intensive manufacturing sector, which was flat for October, and transportation and warehousing, which shed about 2,100 jobs. These sectors, which work in tandem, have been hampered by a slowing global economy and strong U.S. dollar that has hurt American exports because they are now more expensive relative to their competition.

▪ It’s getting better for workers: The unemployment rate, when rounded, fell from 5.1 percent to 5 percent last month. There are 1.1 million fewer unemployed workers than a year earlier, the Labor Department reported. Deeper in the report, there were signs that stress points in the labor force are easing up.

The number of people working part time but wanting full-time work fell again in October and now stands at 5.8 million. That’s 1.2 million fewer of these so-called involuntary part-time workers than there were 12 months earlier.

Similarly, a Labor Department measure of underemployment, sometimes called the “real” unemployment rate, fell to 9.8 percent in October. It marks the first time it has been under 10 percent since May 2008, months before the U.S. financial crisis, and well below the crisis peak of 17.1 percent.

And workers are finally beginning to see their take-home pay improve. Average hourly earnings rose 0.4 percent in October and 2.5 percent over the past 12 months. With inflation tame, workers are earning modestly more and their dollars stretch further.

▪ Report may support Fed action:

The Federal Reserve has wrestled with when to lift its benchmark lending rate for the first time since 2006. Many analysts now think it has the green light to do so, which will result in gradually higher borrowing costs for consumers and businesses alike on mortgages and vehicle purchases.

“The overall strength in this report should serve to enhance the chances that the Federal Reserve will begin to raise short-term interest rates at its December meeting,” said Chad Moutray, chief economist for the National Association of Manufacturers.

OCTOBER BY THE NUMBERS

The U.S. economy added 271,000 jobs in October, according to a report released Friday. Sectors enjoying strong growth included:

▪ Professional and business services: Up 78,000

▪ Manufacturing: Unchanged

▪ Leisure and hospitality: Up 41,000

▪ Health care: Up 44,900

▪ Construction: Up 31,000

▪ Temporary help services: Up 24,500

▪ Transportation and warehousing: Down 2,100

▪ Retail: Up 43,800

▪ Financial services: Up 5,000

▪ Government jobs: Up 3,000

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Never miss a local story.

Sign up today for a free 30 day free trial of unlimited digital access.